Injuries to the body, such as a broken arm, a broken leg or an ankle strain, are common to people all over the world. It is well known that to adequately treat such an injury, the injured part of the body should be elevated, immobilized and cooled with a cooling device. Normally, the method of treating the injury involves splinting the injured area to prevent movement, applying ice to the injured area and raising the injured area to minimize swelling.
Currently, there are a number of devices available that combine a splint with an ice bag to provide a single device that encompasses both features. U.S Pat. No. 3,561,435 discloses an inflatable splint with a container for the holding of ice. U.S. Pat. No. 3,901,225 discloses an inflatable splint with a plurality of spaced apart pockets for containing hot or cold therapeutic substances. U.S. Pat. No. 4,971,041 discloses an apparatus for supporting and protecting the limb of a patient wherein provisions may be made for heat/ice packs by providing pockets on the inside of the wrap. U.S. Pat. No. 5,065,758 discloses a cold pack for treating an injury wherein BLUE ICE is encased in elongated plastic closed end cylinders and the cylinders are inserted in parallel pockets formed in a wrapper.
Disposable Splints are also known. A disposable splint is relatively inexpensive to make and can be thrown away after a minimal number of uses (for usually one use). U.S. Pat. No. 3,624,745 discloses a disposable splint formed from a heavy, bendable sheet material such as cardboard, or the like, that may be carried in a flattened condition to the scene of the accident. Also, DynaMed Co. with offices in Carlsbad, Calif. makes a similar disposable cardboard splint. Cardboard is an ideal material for disposable splints because it is relatively inexpensive, sturdy, and lightweight and readily available from a variety of sources.
Disposable splints tend to be simpler in design than reusable splints and therefore usually are less expensive. Hence, after a disposable splint is used, rather than worrying about cleaning the splint, it can be thrown away. Unfortunately, however, current disposable splints have no provisions for accommodating ice bags or other cooling devices. Instead, typically, the injury is first splinted using the prior art disposable splint, and then ice is either held next to the injured area or ice is wrapped around the injury with a separate wrapping device.
Ice bags are well known. They are bags that are filled with normal ice (frozen water) and require refrigeration before they become cold. Cold packs are also well known. A cold pack is usually filled with chemicals other than water to lengthen the amount of time that the cold pack stays cold after refrigeration. However, they still require refrigeration to become cold.
Instant cold packs (also known as xe2x80x9cinstant ice packsxe2x80x9d) are known in the prior art. They are easily distinguished from ice bags or cold packs in that the instant cold pack requires no refrigeration. Instead, the instant cold pack consists of chemicals in a bag containing two or more compartments that function to keep the chemicals separated until activation is desired. Activation is achieved by rupturing or removing the separating means to produce an endothermic reaction, that is, as a result of the chemical reaction, cold is produced by the absorption of heat from the surroundings.
There are several instant cold packs disclosed in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 2,907,173 discloses a refrigeration package comprising an outer sealed envelope coated with metallic foil and containing a dry freezing chemical mixture, and another sealed envelope within the outer sealed envelope, wherein the other sealed envelope contains a hydrous substance and is rupturable without breaking the outer envelope. U.S. Pat. No. 3,977,202 discloses a similar instant cold pack comprising ammonium nitrate, sodium acetate trihydrate and an aqueous solution of ethylene glycol wherein the components are separated until activation is desired, but when activated by admixing, an endothermic reaction occurs resulting in a lowering of the temperature of the device. Also, Allegiance Healthcare Corp, with offices in McGraw Park, Ill. currently offers an instant cold pack that relies on the interaction of water and ammonium nitrate to provide cold. Thera-Med, Inc., with offices in Waco, Tex. offers an instant cold pack that also relies on the interaction of water and anmuonium nitrate to provide cold.
FIG. 1B shows a cross section view of prior art instant cold pack 10. Water-filled thin plastic bag 10A fits inside sturdy plastic bag 10C. Ammonium nitrate 10B surrounds plastic bag 10A. The user activates instant cold pack 10 by squeezing it. This causes water-filled thin plastic bag 10A to rupture. The water and ammonium nitrate 10B interact chemically and cold is produced.
Because instant cold packs become xe2x80x9ccoldxe2x80x9d due to a chemical reaction, they are only cold for a short amount of time. For example, the Allegiance instant cold pack referred to above provides a temperature of 33 degrees F for 30 minutes. Therefore, after an instant cold pack has been used (i.e., the chemical reaction has occurred), it is usually disposed of.
What is needed is a better disposable splint.
The present invention provides a disposable splint that has a brace, at least one instant cold pack, and an attachment means for attaching the brace and the at least one instant cold pack to a wearer""s limb. In a preferred embodiment, the disposable splint is secured to the wearer""s limb via an elastic wrap. Also in a preferred embodiment the brace portion is foldable and comprises a bottom brace portion and two side brace portions. Also in a preferred embodiment, the instant cold pack is fixedly attached to the brace portion via a hook and loop connection.